The University of Manchester’s Food In Residence team have won The University Catering Organisation’s (TUCO) prestigious award for the most sustainable university caterers for 2017. This comes just days after Food In Residence was awarded the highest level of 3 stars by the Sustainable Restaurant Association for our sustainable practices across halls.

Food In Residence caters for 2,200 students daily in term time for breakfast and dinner across its nine halls. Both of these awards were for its transformational steps to bring about more ethical and social responsible catering for all our catered students.

The award and 3 star accreditation was for the teams transition to working with more local organic farms, the development of a local food cooperative in Manchester from which we source some of our food from within 50 miles of Manchester, supporting the local community such as creating a Christmas meal for carers and homeless people around Fallowfield and prioritising healthy eating on our menus. Some of the highlights have been:

• Over 50% of our menu is now vegetarian and vegan
• 50% of our beef is organic and from local farms in the North West
• 80% of all eggs served are organic and from local farms in the North West
• 100% of our milk is organic
• 20% of all our vegetables come from Manchester Veg People, a local cooperative of growers the University helped to set up and support its development by being a member of their board
• Only Marine Stewardship Council approved fish is served in any of our outlets.

Simon Merrywest, Director for the Student Experience, said: “This is fantastic to see our students benefitting from some of the country’s finest and most sustainable catering out of any University in the country whilst living in our halls of residence. These awards help to show to current and future students that we have high quality catering that prioritises our customers needs and wishes first to ensure they have the best student experience possible.”

James Thompson, Vice President for Social Responsibility, added: “The University is committed to Environmental Sustainability & Social Responsibility and it is great to see that the Food In Residence team have put this agenda at the centre of the business to ensure the University plays its part in supporting local suppliers and opting for more sustainable food sources in order to help address key challenges in the food industry.”